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CONFIDENCES 


By  th€  same  author 

TRUTHS 

Talks  With  a  Boy  Concerning  Himself 
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HERSELF 
Talks  With  Women  Concerning  Themselves 

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CONFIDENCES 

TALKS  WITH  A  YOUNG  GIRL 
CONCERNING  HERSELF 


•T 

EDITH  B.  LOWRY,  M.  D. 


CHICAGO 

FORBES  &  COMPANY 

1913 


^ 


t> 


\J^ 


COPYRIGHT,    1910,    BY 
FORBES  AND  COMPANY 


To  the  daughters  of  my  friends, 
bai  espectatty  to 

MARY  LOUISE 

this  tittle  book  is  toUngty 

dedicated 


285579 


PREFACE 

NO  one  can  come  in  contact  with 
children  and  young  people 
without  feeling  the  need  of  a  united 
effort  on  the  part  of  the  parents,  phy- 
sicians and  teachers  to  lessen  the  im- 
moral tendencies,  with  their  degrad- 
ing effects,  to  which  the  present  gen- 
eration is  subjected.  Knowledge  of 
the  right  sort  will  prevent  many 
wrecked  lives.  Ignorance  as  to  facts 
and  to  the  best  manner  of  presenting 
them  prevents  many  a  parent  from 
daring  to  trespass  upon  such  sacred 
ground,  and  the  instruction  is  post- 
poned from  day  to  day  until  it  is 
too  late. 


PREFACE 

With  the  desire  to  aid  mothers  in 
giving  the  necessary  instruction  to 
their  daughters,  this  little  book  has 
been  written.  The  author  has  tried 
to  tell  in  suitable  language  the  facts 
that  should  be  known  by  every  girl 
from  ten  to  fourteen  years  of  age. 
The  book  is  of  such  a  character  that 
it  may  be  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
young  girl,  but  better  still  it  may  be 
read  aloud  by  the  mother  to  her 
daughter.  It  is  hoped  this  book  will 
form  the  basis  of  a  closer  intimacy 
between  mother  and  daughter,  and 
that  the  knowledge  herein  set  forth 
will  forestall  that  which  might  be 
given  in  an  entirely  different  spirit 
by  the  girPs  companions. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAOE 

I.    The  Secret 13 

II.    The  Flower  Babies 21 

in.    The  Bird  Babies 29 

IV.    Mother's  Baby 37 

V.    The  Baby's  Nest 47 

VI.    Building  the  Nest 61 

VII.    The  Sign  Language 71 

Vni.    Eest  and  Sleep 81 

IX.    Injury  of  the  Nest 89 


In  all  places,  then,  and  in  all  seasons, 
Flowers  expand  their  light  and  soul-like 
wings, 
Teaching  us,  by  most  persuasive  reasons. 
How  akin  they  are  to  human  things. 

Longfellow. 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  SECRET 

LISTEN,  Violet,  I  am  going  to  teil 
you  a  wonderful  secret.  And 
this  wonderful  secret  is  about  your 
namesakes,  the  violets.  Every  little 
flower  that  grows  is  a  living  being,  as 
you  or  I — and  every  plant  is  a  house- 
hold. How  do  I  know  this?  The 
flowers  told  me  themselves,  and  now 
I  am  going  to  let  you  into  the  secret. 
Of  course,  I  must  admit  that  the 
flowers  do  not  talk  as  we  do.  Unlike 
ourselves,  they  cannot  express  them- 
selves aloud.  They  must  show  their 
thoughts  by  their  motions  or  by  their 
change  of  expression.  When  a  flower 
—13— 


: .:  CONFIDENCES 

is  thirsty,  how  does  it  tell  us  so?  By 
drooping  its  head  and  looking  sad. 
Then,  if  we  give  it  a  drink,  how 
quickly  it  says,  *^ Thank  you!^'  by 
lifting  its  head  and  smiling  at  us. 

If  we  would  have  the  flowers  tell 
us  their  secrets,  we  must  watch  them 
very  closely  so  as  to  be  able  to  hear 
what  they  say.  Sometimes,  however, 
we  must  learn  from  others  what  the 
plants  like,  for  at  first,  until  we  are 
better  acquainted,  we  will  not  be  able 
to  understand  them,  and  might  make 
many  mistakes;  so  I  am  going  to  tell 
you  a  few  things  today. 

First,  we  must  learn  something 
about  the  flower's  family,  and  where 
the  flower  gets  its  food.  The  flowers 
are  a  part  of  the  plant  household  just 
the  same  as  you  or  any  little  girl  is 
—14— 


THE  SECRET 

only  a  part  of  the  family.  You  could 
not  very  well  live  without  the  rest  of 
the  family — your  father  and  mother, 
who  do  so  many  things  for  you  and 
take  such  care  of  you,  and  your  broth- 
ers and  sisters,  who  all  help  to  make 
the  home  happy. 

The  flower  is  like  a  little  girl  and 
needs  some  one  to  care  for  her.  Do 
you  know  the  other  members  of  the 
plant  household? 

First,  there  are  the  roots,  whose 
work  it  is  to  hold  the  plant  in  place 
so  it  will  not  be  tossed  about  by  every 
wind.  The  roots  also  must  draw 
the  water  and  nourishment  from  the 
ground.  You  know  when  the  rain 
comes,  it  soaks  into  the  ground  and 
then  when  the  plant  needs  water  the 
little  roots  suck  it  out  of  the  ground 
—15— 


CONFIDENCES 

just  as  you  could  draw  lemonade 
through  a  straw,  for  every  root  is 
supplied  with  many  hair  tubes  that 
serve  as  straws.  These  hair  tubes 
often  are  so  small  we  could  not  see 
them  without  a  microscope,  but  it 
is  through  these  tiny  tubes  the 
plant  receives  nearly  all  the  water 
it  uses. 

Other  members  of  the  family,  the 
leaves,  are  kept  busy,  for  they  must 
do  the  breathing  for  the  plant,  as  well 
as  digest  the  food.  You  know  water 
is  never  quite  free  from  mineral  mat- 
ter, so  when  the  roots  draw  up  the 
water  from  the  ground,  they  also 
draw  up  some  mineral  food  for  the 
plant  which  is  dissolved  in  the  wa- 
ter. Before  the  plant  can  make  use 
of  this  food,  it  must  be  digested  by 
—16— 


THE  SECRET 

the  leaves,  much  the  same  as  your 
stomach  must  digest  the  food  you 
eat.  That  is,  it  must  change  it  into 
another  form.  But  in  order  that  the 
leaves  may  do  this,  they  must  have 
plenty  of  chlorophyll,  which  is  the 
green  coloring  matter  of  the  leaves. 
This  chlorophyll  will  grow  in  the 
leaves  if  they  have  plenty  of  sim- 
light,  and  if  it  does  not  grow  the 
leaves  will  not  be  able  to  digest  the 
food  and  the  plant  will  starve.  So 
you  see  how  necessary  it  is  for  plants 
to  have  plenty  of  simshine,  and  why 
they  lose  their  green  color  and  then 
die  if  they  are  kept  away  from  the 
light.  They  really  are  starved  to 
death. 


-17- 


Flowers  are  words 
Which   even   a   babe  may  understand. 

Bishop  Coxe. 


CHAPTER  n 
THE    FLOWER    BABIES 

THE  jBower  itself  has  many  parts, 
just  as  there  are  many  parts  to 
your  body.  When  the  flower  is  a 
little  bud,  or  baby,  rocked  by  the 
breezes,  it  is  closely  wrapped  in  a 
little  green  cloak.  We  call  this 
cloak  the  calyx,  because  when  it 
opens  it  looks  like  a  cup,  and  the 
word  calyx  means  cup.  After  the 
bud  is  grown,  it  opens  its  cloak 
and  throws  it  back.  Then  we  see 
the  pretty  dress  underneath.  We 
call  this  dress  the  corolla.  Some- 
times it  is  all  in  one  piece,  but 
—21— 


CONFIDENCES 

often  it  is  divided  into  several  leaf- 
like parts  which  we  call  petals. 

If  we  look  within  the  dress  or 
corolla,  we  find  the  real  body  of 
the  flower,  which  is  called  the  pis- 
til. Its  shape  varies  greatly  in  dif- 
ferent plants,  but  it  always  con- 
sists of  two  or  three  distinct  parts. 
One  of  these  is  the  cradle  for  the 
seeds,  and  is  called  the  ovary.  At 
one  end  of  the  ovary  is  usually  a 
little  tube  leading  down  into  it. 
This  tube  is  called  the  style,  and 
the  opening  at  the  other  end  is 
called  the  stigma.  Each  ovary  or 
cradle  contains  one  or  more  ovules 
which  by  and  by  will  grow  into 
seeds.  Just  outside  the  pistil  of  a 
flower  you  usually  will  find  a  row 
of  slender,  thread-like  stalks,  each 
—23— 


THE  FLOWER  BABIES 

bearing  a  soft,  oblong  body  at  the 
top,  falling  out  of  which  you  will 
see  a  fine  yellow  powder  called 
pollen.  It  is  a  peculiar  fact  that 
these  seeds  never  can  grow  into 
new  plants  unless  they  are  fertil- 
ized, that  is,  unless  they  receive 
some  pollen.  It  is  another  pecul- 
iar fact  that  although  nearly  ev- 
ery flower  has  this  pollen  growing 
right  near  the  little  ovules,  yet 
they  cannot  be  fertilized  with  this 
pollen,  but  must  receive  some  from 
the  flower  of  another  plant  family. 
This  pollen  is  carried  from  one 
plant  to  another  by  the  wind  or 
by  the  bees  and  butterflies  that 
come  visiting  in  search  of  honey. 
In  fact,  the  flower  coaxes  the  bees 
and  butterflies  to  come  so  they 
—23— 


CONFIDENCES 

may  bring  her  the  pollen.  Soon 
after  the  seed  is  fertilized  it  is 
ripe;  that  is,  it  is  ready  to  leave 
its  cradle,  the  ovary.  It  is  now 
ready  to  grow  into  a  new  plant. 
But  before  it  can  grow  it  must  be 
put  into  a  little  nest  in  the  ground. 
But  the  poor  plant  is  so  helpless 
that  she  is  unable  to  prepare  this 
nest  herself,  so  all  she  can  do  is 
to  scatter  her  seed  babies  out  on 
the  ground  and  hope  some  one  will 
take  pity  on  them  and  make  a  nice 
nest  for  them.  Sometimes  the  wind 
helps  her  by  blowing  some  dirt  and 
dead  leaves  over  them,  for  you 
know  the  seeds  cannot  grow  unless 
they  are  covered  nice  and  warm. 
Sometimes  the  children  and  grown 
people  help  her  by  preparing  a  nice 
flower-bed. 

— 24r~ 


THE  FLOWER  BABIES 

For  a  long  time  the  tiny  seed 
lies  very  quietly  in  its  warm  nest, 
and  if  we  could  peek  at  it  we  could 
not  see  it  move  at  all,  but  all  the 
time  it  is  growing  very  slowly,  un- 
til finally  some  bright  day  it  will 
send  up  its  little  sprouts,  and  then 
we  will  see  that  all  the  time  the 
seed  was  lying  so  quietly  it  was 
growing  into  a  baby  flower. 


-25— 


'So  the  Bluebirds   have   contracted,   have 
they,  for  a  house? 
And  a  nest  is  under  way  for  little  Mr, 
Wrenr' 
*Hush,  dear,  hush!    Be  quiet,  dear!  quiet 
as  a  mouse. 
These  are  weighty  secrets,  and  we  must 
whisper  them.'* 

Susan  Coolidge. 


CHAPTER  in 

THE  BIRD  BABIES 

TODAY,  Violet,  I  shall  teU  you 
another  secret,  but  this  time 
the  secret  is  not  about  flowers, 
but  about  something  else  we  love 
very  dearly.  I  intend  to  tell  you 
some  secrets  about  the  birds.  I 
wonder  if  you  know  how  much 
they  are  like  the  flowers? 

You  remember,  the  flowers  had  a 
language  which  we  could  under- 
stand, even  if  they  did  not  talk 
out  loud.  The  birds,  too,  have  a 
language  of  their  own,  and  they 
can  express  themselves  better  than 
the  flowers,   for  they  have   a  sign 

language,  and  are  also  able  to  make 

—29— 


CONFIDENCES 

sounds.  How  much  we  enjoy  hear- 
ing the  birds  sing,  not  only  be- 
cause they  make  beautiful  music, 
but  because  they  are  telling  us 
how  happy  they  are! 

If  birds  are  in  pain  or  in  trou- 
ble, their  notes  are  quite  different 
from  when  they  are  singing;  while, 
if  they  or  their  little  ones  are  in 
danger,  they  quickly  send  forth  a 
note  of  warning.  The  young  birds, 
in  calling  for  food,  make  an  en- 
tirely different  sound,  and  the  an- 
swer of  the  mother  bird  is  a  sweet 
lullaby.  One  of  the  ways  birds  ex- 
press themselves  in  sign  language 
is  by  their  feathers.  If  they  are 
sick,  their  feathers  droop.  When 
they  are  well  and  happy,  their 
feathers  seem  much  brighter. 
—30— 


THE  BIRD  BABIES 

In  the  bird  family,  as  in  the 
flower  family,  each  member  has  a 
special  work  to  do.  The  mother 
bird  and  the  father  bird  work  to- 
gether to  build  the  nest,  but  while 
the  mother  bird  lays  the  eggs  and 
then  must  sit  on  them  for  a  num- 
ber of  days,  the  father  bird  must 
bring  her  food  and  water  and  some- 
times take  his  turn  watching  the 
nest  while  the  mother  goes  for  a 
little  exercise.  The  mother  bird's 
body  resembles  the  plant,  too,  for 
it  needs  fresh  air,  food  and  water. 
Instead  of  leaves  to  take  in  the  air 
it  has  limgs,  which  not  only  take 
in  the  fresh  air  but  also  send  out 
the  impure  air.  Instead  of  the  lit- 
tle rootlets  to  take  in  the  food  and 
water  from  the  ground,  the  bird 
—31— 


CONFIDENCES 

has  a  mouth,  and  as  the  bird  is 
not  fastened  to  the  ground,  but  is 
free  to  fly  or  move  about,  it  goes 
after  its  food.  Instead  of  sap,  it 
has  blood  to  carry  the  food  to  all 
parts  of  the  body. 

The  birds  have  ovaries  just  the 
same  as  the  flowers,  and  inside  each 
ovary  are  a  number  of  little  seeds 
or  ovules  which  by  and  by  will 
grow  into  birdies.  It  takes  quite 
a  while  for  the  ovules  to  ripen, 
just  as  it  took  quite  a  while  for 
the  seeds  to  ripen,  and  when  they 
are  ripe  they  must  have  a  nest 
prepared  for  them,  just  as  the 
flowers  did.  But  the  birds  are  not 
as  helpless  as  the  flowers,  and  are 
able  to  make  their  own  nests.  So 
when  the  ovules  (which  are  called 
—32— 


THE  BIRD  BABIES 

eggs  when  they  are  ripe)  are 
ready,  the  parent  birds  select  a 
nice  place  for  a  home. 

The  father  and  mother  work 
very  hard  until  the  nest  is  fin- 
ished. Often  the  mother  will  line 
it  with  some  of  her  own  feathers, 
so  that  it  will  be  soft  and  warm. 
After  the  nest  is  ready  the  mother 
bird  lays  the  tiny  eggs  in  it.  Then 
she  must  sit  on  them  to  keep  them 
warm  for  many  days,  for  the  eggs, 
like  the  seeds,  cannot  grow  unless 
they  are  kept  good  and  warm.  If 
we  look  at  the  eggs  from  day  to 
day  we  will  not  be  able  to  see  any 
change  in  them,  but  the  change  is 
inside  the  shell  where  we  cannot 
see  it.  Every  day  there  is  an  al- 
teration taking  place,  and  the  egg 
—33— 


CONFIDENCES 

gradually  is  being  transformed  into 
the  little  bird.  After  a  while,  when 
the  right  time  comes,  the  birdie 
will  peck  a  tiny  hole  in  the  shell. 
This  will  keep  growing  larger  and 
larger  imtil  it  is  large  enough  for 
the  birdie  to  come  through,  then 
out  it  comes! 


-34- 


A  sweet,  new  blossom  of  Humanity, 
Fresh  fallen  from  God's  own  home  to  flower 
on  earth. 

Gerald  Massey. 


CHAPTER  IV 

MOTHER'S  BABY 

THERE  is  another  wonderful 
secret  that  I  have  to  tell  you. 
I  wonder  if  you  can  guess  what 
this  is!  No,  it  is  not  about  a  flow- 
er, nor  a  bird  —  but,  yes,  you  have 
guessed  it  right,  for  it  is  about  a 
girl  just  like   you! 

Is  it  not  queer  how  much  alike 
the  jflowers  and  birds  and  little 
girls  are,  after  all,  even  if  they  do 
not  look  at  all  alike? 

You  have  lungs  just  the  same  as 

the  bird,    and   breathe    as    it    does. 

You  have  two  feet,  but  instead  of 

wings   you   have   arms    and   hands. 

You  have  a  sign  language,  as  the 
—37— 


CONFIDENCES 

flowers  have,  and  you  have  a  lan- 
guage of  sounds  that  is  even  bet- 
ter than  the  bird  language.  When 
you  are  happy,  I  can  tell  it  by  the 
smiles  on  your  face,  and  sometimes 
when  you  are  a  wee  bit  cross,  I 
know  it  by  a  tiny  frown  that  mars 
the  beauty  of  your  face.  But,  of 
course,  that  does  not  happen  very 
often,  because,  you  know,  as  we 
grow  older,  our  faces  do  not  change 
their  expressions  as  easily  as  they 
do  when  we  are  young.  And  would 
it  not  be  dreadful,  if  when  you 
grew  up,  you  always  had  a  frown 
on  your  face  and  were  not  nice 
looking  at  all?  You  know  the 
frown  wrinkles  try  to  stay,  and 
every  time  we  let  them  come  out 
they  leave  a  tiny  mark. 
—38— 


MOTHER'S  BABY 

When  the  flower  took  in  the 
fresh  air  it  made  green  coloring 
matter,  but  when  you  take  in  the 
fresh  air  it  makes  red  coloring 
matter.  So  if  you  want  to  have 
red  cheeks  and  red  lips  you  must 
have  plenty  of  fresh  air.  I  know 
you  get  a  great  deal  in  the  day- 
time when  you  are  playing,  but 
you  must  be  sure  to  get  it  at 
night,  too,  or  you  will  lose  all  your 
pretty  color.  Be  sure  that  your 
window  is  open  every  night. 

You  remember,  the  leaves  not 
only  had  to  breathe  but  they  had 
to  digest  the  food  for  the  plant, 
too,  but  the  bird  had  a  stomach  to 
perform  that  work. 

In  this  way  you  are  like  the 
birds,  for  you  have  a  stomach 
—39— 


CONFIDENCES 

which  takes  care  of  the  food  you 
eat.  If  you  wish  to  grow  strong 
and  well  so  as  to  be  able  to  run 
and  play  and  also  to  help  your 
mother  with  her  work,  you  must 
eat  plenty  of  good,  nourishing  food. 
You  know  some  food  makes  mus- 
cles, but  other  things  are  not  very 
good  for  people  to  eat.  Plenty  of 
bread  and  milk  and  cereals,  also 
meat,  potatoes  and  fruit,  are  very 
good  things  to  make  girls  grow. 
You  must  take  care  of  your  stom- 
ach, too,  and  give  it  time  to  rest, 
for  it  works  very  hard  and  might 
get  tired  out.  Then  what  would 
you  do? 

You  have  seen,  Violet,  that  in  a 
great  many  ways  you  are  like  the 
birds   and   flowers,   but   now  I  am 
—40— 


MOTHER'S  BABY 

going  to  tell  you  something  that 
perhaps  you  did  not  know.  Girls 
have  ovaries  just  the  same  as 
flowers  and  birds,  and  inside  each 
ovary  are  a  great  many  little 
ovules  that  after  a  while  will  ripen 
as  the  seeds  did,  only  instead  of 
growing  into  flowers  or  birds  they 
will  grow  into  babies.  Is  that  not 
lovely,  and  are  you  not  glad  that 
perhaps  some  day  you  will  be  able 
to  have  a  baby  all  your  own?  But 
of  course  that  will  not  be  for  a 
great  many  years  yet,  for  you 
must  wait  until  you  have  grown 
into  a  strong  woman  and  have  a 
home  of  your  own  and  a  husband 
to  help  take  care  of  the  baby. 

When  the   little   ovules  are   ripe 
there  must  be  a  nest  prepared  for 
—41— 


CONFIDENCES 

them,  just  the  same  as  there  was 
one  prepared  for  the  flowers  and 
birds.  But  now  I  shall  tell  you 
another  wonderful  secret.  Mothers 
do  not  have  to  build  nests,  for 
they  are  already  prepared  for  them 
right  inside  their  bodies  close  to 
their  hearts.  The  nest  is  called  the 
womb.  Although  we  do  not  have 
to  build  the  nest,  we  have  to  take 
good  care  of  it  so  it  may  grow 
strong. 

This  nest  and  the  tiny  ovules  are 
growing  constantly  from  the  time 
the  girls  are  babies,  but  they  grow 
so  very  slowly  that  none  of  the 
ovules  are  ripe  until  the  girl  is 
about  twelve  years  old.  After  that 
one  ripens  every  month  and  passes 
to  the  nest  or  womb.  At  the  same 
—42— 


MOTHER'S  BABY 

time  an  extra  amount  of  blood  is 
sent  to  the  womb  to  provide  nour- 
ishing material  for  the  ovule  to  use 
in  its  growth.  But  the  womb,  or 
nest,  is  not  strong  enough  yet  to 
hold  a  healthy  baby,  so  this  extra 
amount  of  blood  with  the  ovule  is 
sent  out  of  the  body  through  the 
vagina,  which  is  a  muscular  tube 
leading  from  the  womb  to  the  ex- 
ternal parts  (private  parts).  We  call 
this  flow  the  menstrual  flow.  This 
occurs  every  month  and  each  time 
the  womb  becomes  a  little  stronger 
and  better  able  to  hold  a  growing 
babe.  But  the  womb  is  not  fully 
developed  until  the  rest  of  the  body 
is  matured. 

Menstruation  is   the   sign  of  the 
possibility  of  motherhood.     Eealiz- 
—43— 


CONFIDENCES 

ing  this  fact,  one  cannot  fail  to 
have  a  high  idea  of  this  function. 
Most  girls,  naturally,  desire  chil- 
dren. Little  girls  love  their  doll 
babies,  and  spend  much  time  in 
caring  for  them,  but  as  girls  grow 
into  womanhood  they  desire  real 
babies.  A  woman  who  does  not 
desire  children  has  had  her  mind 
perverted  by  false  ideas  or  fear. 


-44- 


Build  me  straight,  0  worthy  Master! 

Staunch  and  strong,  a  goodly  vessel 
That   shall   laugh   at   all   disaster, 

And  with  wave  and  whirlwind  wrestle! 

Longfellow. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  BABY'S  NEST 

YOTJ  remember,  Violet,  I  told 
you  that  although  mothers  do 
not  have  to  build  nests,  yet  they 
have  to  take  good  care  of  them  so 
they  will  grow  strong. 

As  the  natural  desire  of  every 
girl  is  to  become  a  mother  some 
time,  she  must  begin  very  early  to 
prepare  for  it.  By  exercise,  fresh 
air,  and  good,  nourishing  food,  she 
should  make  her  body  grow  strong 
and  well.  By  stud5dng  she  will  de- 
velop her  mind  so  as  to  be  fitted 
to  care  for  and  to  teach  her  child. 
Shall  I  tell  you  some  ways  you 
can  make  the  nest  grow  strong? 
—47— 


CONFIDENCES 

!First,  I  shall  tell  you  more 
things  about  this  mother  nest.  Al- 
though it  and  the  tiny  ovules  are 
growing  all  the  time,  yet  there 
are  greater  changes  in  them  when 
the  girl  is  from  twelve  to  fourteen 
years  old.  About  this  time  they 
grow  faster  than  at  any  other  time. 
As  these  organs  grow,  the  pelvis, 
or  the  part  of  the  body  that  con- 
tains them,  also  must  grow  to  make 
room  for  them.  So  the  hips  begin 
to  grow  broader.  Other  parts  of 
the  body  grow  faster  at  this  time, 
too,  and  often  some  parts  grow  so 
much  faster  than  others  that  they 
are  out  of  proportion,  and  the  child 
becomes  clumsy  and  feels  awkward. 
But  that  will  not  last  long,  for 
after  a  while  the  parts  that  are 
—48— 


THE  BABY'S  NEST 

growing  slowly  will  catch  up  to 
the  ones  that  grew  fast,  and  then 
the  body  will  be  graceful  again. 
Have  you  ever  watched  a  young 
puppy?  You  know  how  clumsy 
and  awkward  it  is  while  it  is  grow- 
ing, but  after  a  while,  when  it  is 
fully  grown,  it  will  be  very  grace- 
ful. 

We  know  it  is  not  wise  to  run 
or  play  or  work  hard  right  after 
eating  a  large  meal,  for  then  the 
stomach  is  working  very  hard  and 
needs  a  great  deal  of  extra  energy, 
so  the  other  muscles  must  rest  a 
while,  in  order  to  let  it  have  it. 

You  remember,  I  told  you,  Violet, 
that  every  month,  or  every  twen- 
ty-eight days,  there  was  an  extra 
amount  of  blood  carried  to  the 
—49— 


CONFIDENCES 

womb  which  it  had  to  send  out 
of  the  body.  Of  course  that  re- 
quires the  womb  to  work  very 
hard  for  a  few  days,  so,  in  order 
to  help  it,  we  must  be  careful  not 
to  take  any  severe  exercise  at  this 
time  or  overexert  ourselves  in  any 
way,  for,  if  we  did,  the  womb 
would  not  be  able  to  do  its  extra 
work  properly. 

You  remember,  I  told  you  this 
flow,  which  we  call  the  menstrual 
flow,  was  the  sign  of  the  possibil- 
ity of  motherhood,  so  every  girl 
should  be  glad  of  the  fact  that  she 
menstruates  and  should  take  good 
care  of  herself  at  that  time.  She 
should  pay  especial  attention  to 
cleanliness  during  this  period.  She 
should  be  provided  with  a  circular 
—50— 


THE  BABY'S  NEST 

girdle  of  some  strong  material  cut 
upon  the  bias,  so  it  may  be  elastic, 
and  provided  with  tabs  to  which 
to  pin  the  folded  cloth.  She  also 
should  have  a  supply  of  sanitary 
cloths  made  of  absorbent  cotton 
fabric,  or  pads  made  of  absorb- 
ent-cotton enclosed  in  gauze.  The 
latter  are  especially  convenient 
for  the  girl  who  is  obliged  to 
room  away  from  home,  for  they 
may  be  biu*ned,  and  the  cost  of 
new  ones  is  no  greater  than  the 
laundry  of  cloths.  These  pads  or 
cloths  should  be  changed  at  least 
twice  a  day.  It  also  is  necessary 
that  one  should  bathe  the  parts  in 
warm  water  with  each  change,  as 
unpleasant  odors  can  thereby  be 
avoided.  At  the  close  of  each  pe- 
—51— 


CONFIDENCES 

riod  she  should  take  a  bath  and 
change  all  clothing.  One  cannot  be 
too  careful  about  these  matters,  so 
essential  to  cleanliness  and  health. 
During  this  period,  girls  natu- 
rally have  a  feeling  of  lassitude  or 
disinclination  to  do  any  great  men- 
tal or  physical  work,  accompanied, 
perhaps,  by  a  slight  feeling  of  un- 
easiness in  the  pelvic  region  (the 
part  of  the  body  that  contains  the 
womb  and  ovaries).  Because  so 
many  do  suffer  at  this  time,  it 
often  is  considered  ^* natural''  and 
allowed  to  continue,  but  now  that 
you  know  so  much  about  the  body 
you  will  understand  that  it  is  not 
necessary  to  have  any  pains  at  this 
period.  If  there  is  pain,  it  shows 
that  we  are  not  taking  proper  care 
—52— 


THE  BABY'S  NEST 

of  ourselves.  Even  our  stomach 
will  give  us  severe  pain  if  we  do 
not  take  proper  care  of  it  or  if  we 
overload  it. 

The  monthly  discharge  varies  in 
quantity  with  the  individual.  Usu- 
ally fleshy  girls  flow  more  than 
thin  ones,  and  dark  complexioned 
girls  than  light  ones.  The  dis- 
charge lasts  about  four  days,  and 
is  the  only  symptom  that  many 
girls  experience  in  menstruation. 
This  usually  is  the  case  with  those 
who  are  well  and  whose  lives  are 
happily  employed. 

I  wanted  you  to  know  all  these 
things,  Violet,  for  sometimes  when 
little  girls  do  not  understand  what 
this  flow  means  they  are  fright- 
ened when  they  see  the  blood. 
—53— 


CONFIDENCES 

Some  women  even  dread  mother- 
hood because  they  do  not  know 
what  to  expect  at  that  tune  nor 
how  to  care  for  themselves.  All 
women  naturally  love  babies  and  if 
taught  correctly  would  want  to  have 
them.  If  they  do  not,  it  usually  is 
because  they  have  known  of  other 
women  suffering  through  ignorance 
and  are  afraid.  If  they  would  learn 
more  about  these  wonderful  bodies 
of  ours  and  more  about  the  care  of 
little  babies,  they  would  understand 
how  to  care  for  themselves  so  as  to 
have  healthy,  happy  babies.  Not 
only  that  but  they  would  see  it  was 
the  natural  and  the  best  thing  for 
them  to  have  children.  In  any  work 
we  undertake,  in  everything  we  do, 
there  is  a  possibility  of  an  accident. 
—54— 


THE  BABY'S  NEST 

So  it  is  in  motherhood.  A  woman  in 
normal  health  whose  home  life  is 
congenial,  who  loves  children  and 
who  desires  to  have  one,  never 
should  have  any  serious  trouble  nor 
great  pain.  Painless  childbirth  is 
a  possibility  if  women  only  under- 
stood the  care  of  themselves. 

The  modem  athletic  girl  glories 
in  her  strength.  She  feels  it  a  dis- 
grace to  be  a  frail  flower  that  can- 
not enter  into  the  best  enjoyment 
of  life.  She  glories  in  her  strong, 
well-trained  body.  She  walks  with 
free  yet  graceful  step,  holding  her 
head  high,  for  she  knows  she  is 
queen  of  her  kingdom — ^her  body. 
Her  lungs  are  well  developed  and 
her  body  well  cared  for,  so  she 
has  no  fear  of  disease.  But  the 
—55— 


CONFIDENCES 

modem  girl  does  not  stop  there. 
She  wants  to  have  healthy  sex- 
ual organs  with  room  for  devel- 
opment of  the  babe,  and  strong 
muscles  to  perform  their  work  in 
expelling  the  babe.  So  she  dis- 
cards clothing  that  restricts  her  or- 
gans. She  wears  comfortable,  well- 
fitting  clothes.  The  old-fashioned 
corsets  pushed  the  organs  out  of 
place,  but  the  modem  ones,  made 
to  conform  to  nature  ^s  lines,  serve 
only  as  a  support.  As  nature  did 
not  make  a  waist  line,  the  one- 
piece  dresses  are  especially  desir- 
able. Besides  developing  every  or- 
gan and  muscle  of  her  body  and 
training  her  mind,  the  modern  girl 
goes  to  a  training  school  to  pre- 
pare for  the  mother  calling.  Re- 
—56— 


THE  BABY'S  NEST 

cently,  in  a  few  schools,  a  course 
of  study  has  been  provided  for  the 
girls  in  the  care  of  children,  hy- 
giene and  nursing.  Even  women 
who  never  become  mothers  them- 
selves in  this  way  learn  general 
principles  of  psychology,  hygiene 
and  the  care  of  the  sick  that  they 
might  make  use  of  in  every  sta- 
tion of  life.  I  hope,  Violet,  that 
after  a  while  you  will  be  able  to 
learn  many  of  these  things,  so  that 
when  you  are  a  grown  woman  and 
the  time  comes  for  you  to  marry 
and  have  a  baby  you  will  know 
just  how  to  care  for  it. 


—57— 


Reading  is  to  the  mind  what  exercise  is 
to  the  body.  As  by  the  one,  health  is  pre- 
served, strengthened,  and  invigorated;  by 
the  other,  virtue  (which  is  the  health  of  the 
mind)  is  kept  alive,  cherished,  and  con- 
firmed. 

Addison. 


CHAPTER  VI 

BUILDING  THE  NEST 

T^rOW  that  I  have  told  you  so 
■^  ^  many  things  about  the  mother- 
nest,  especially  about  how  it  is 
growing  all  the  time,  I  must  tell 
you  more  about  the  many  helpers 
you  have  who  assist  in  its  growth. 
This  they  do  by  providing  it  with 
food  and  by  carrying  away  the 
waste  material.  We  found  the  bodv 
was  composed  of  many  parts  or 
organs,  each  one  of  which  had  its 
own  especial  work  to  do.  If  any 
one  organ  could  not  perform  its 
work,  some  other  one  would  have 
to  assist  it,  but,  although  the  or- 
—61— 


CONFIDENCES 

gans  are  willing  to  help  each  oth- 
er, it  would  not  be  fair  to  make 
one  do  more  than  its  share  of 
work,  except  for  a  short  time. 

You  remember,  the  stomach  had 
a  great  deal  of  work  to  do  in  di- 
gesting the  food  or  preparing  it  so 
it  could  be  taken  up  by  the  blood 
and  carried  to  the  womb  and  all 
parts  of  the  body.  But  the  stom- 
ach does  not  have  to  do  this  all 
alone.  It  has  several  helpers.  One 
set  of  helpers  is  the  teeth,  which 
cut  and  grind  the  food  into  small 
particles.  In  order  to  do  this,  they 
must  be  kept  in  very  good  con- 
dition; otherwise,  they  could  not 
do  their  work.  You  know  if  your 
mother  would  let  the  kitchen 
knives  get  dull  or  rusty,  she  would 
—62— 


BUILDING  THE  NEST 

be  unable  to  cut  the  bread,  meat 
and  other  food  materials  with 
them.  The  same  is  true  of  the 
teeth.  We  can  keep  them  in  good 
condition  by  brushing  them.  It  is 
as  important  to  do  this  as  to  wash 
the  dishes.  Then,  too,  we  must  be 
careful  not  to  break  the  teeth  by 
biting  nuts  and  other  hard  things. 
Nothing  so  detracts  from  a  girl's 
appearance  and  nothing  is  more 
conducive  to  indigestion  than  poor- 
ly cared  for  teeth.  They  should  be 
brushed  at  least  twice  daily  and 
the  mouth  afterwards  rinsed  with 
a  mild  antiseptic  solution.  The 
teeth  should  be  thoroughly  exam- 
ined by  a  good  dentist  at  least  ev- 
ery six  months. 
Another  assistant  that  the  stom- 
—63— 


CONFIDENCES 

ach  has  is  the  intestines  or  bow- 
els, which  not  only  help  to  di- 
gest the  food  but  also  carry  off 
the  waste  material.  The  bowels  are 
very  good,  and  will  tell  us  when 
they  have  waste  material  to  be  dis- 
posed of,  but  sometimes  people  are 
too  busy  and  do  not  pay  attention. 
If  we  neglect  them  many  times 
the  bowels  get  tired  of  telling  us, 
and  then  their  work  is  not  done. 
We  think  they  are  lazy  and  so  we 
try  to  whip  them  up  by  taking  a 
laxative.  This  seems  to  help  at 
first,  but  we  soon  find  we  have  to 
do  the  same  thing  every  day.  All 
this  time  the  fault  was  our  own, 
for  we  did  not  understand.  The 
best  way  is  to  have  a  regular  time 
of  going  to  the  toilet,  say,  right 
—64— 


BUILDING  THE  NEST 

after  breakfast.  If  we  always  go 
at  the  same  time  the  bowels  will 
remember  it.  Then  we  need  have 
no  trouble  with  constipation  nor 
take  any  horrid  medicine  to  whip 
the  bowels.  A  regular  daily  ac- 
tion of  the  bowels  is  necessary  to 
health.  Constipation  often  may  be 
relieved  by  drinking  a  glass  of  cold 
water  upon  rising,  at  intervals  dur- 
ing the  day,  and  upon  retiring. 
Fruit  at  breakfast  or  figs  taken 
after  meals  often  will  relieve  a  ten- 
dency to  constipation.  Regularity 
in  going  to  the  toilet  is  one  of  the 
most  important  measures  in  treat- 
ing constipation.  Laxatives  or  ca- 
thartics should  not  be  taken  except 
for  an  occasional  dose  or  during 
illness,  upon  the  advice  of  a  physi- 
—65— 


CONFIDENCES 

cian.  So  common  is  the  practice 
of  taking  daily  laxatives  that  it 
has  become  a  * 'national  curse." 
People  do  not  realize  that  they  are 
slaves  to  this  habit.  So  cleverly 
worded  are  the  advertisements  of 
many  of  the  laxatives  that  people 
are  led  to  believe  that  if  they 
drink  certain  '' waters''  or  *Heas" 
they  are  avoiding  medicine,  while 
often  these  same  teas  and  waters 
contain  drugs  more  powerful  and 
harmful  than  any  pill. 

The  bowels  have  some  one  to 
assist  them,  too,  for  the  kidneys 
carry  off  much  of  the  waste  ma- 
terial of  the  body.  Indeed,  they 
carry  off  so  much  that  they  some- 
times are  called  the  sewers.  It 
often  Is  necessary  to  flush  the  sew- 
—66— 


BUILDING  THE  NEST 

ers  of  the  city,  that  is,  to  send 
quantities  of  water  through  them 
to  clean  the  system.  In  the  same 
way  it  is  necessary  to  flush  the 
kidneys.  We  do  this  by  drinking 
plenty  of  water.  Every  one  should 
drink  about  two  quarts  of  water  a 
day. 

There  is  another  worker  that 
helps  both  the  kidneys  and  the 
bowels.  This  is  the  skin,  which 
sends  off  waste  material  through 
the  tiny  pores  or  openings.  If  dirt 
accumulates  on  the  skin,  it  clogs 
the  pores  so  the  skin  cannot  use 
them.  So  you  see  how  necessary 
it  is  to  take  frequent  baths  to 
keep  the  pores  open. 

Other  helpers  that  carry  some  of 
the  waste  material  from  the  body 
—67— 


CONFIDENCES 

are  the  lungs,  which  send  out  the 
impure  air.  The  lungs  also  take  in 
the  pure  air,  which,  you  remember, 
helps  to  make  the  red  coloring 
matter  in  the  blood.  If  you  want 
to  have  nice  red  cheeks,  you  must 
breathe  in  plenty  of  fresh  air. 
Also  you  must  have  plenty  of  ex- 
ercise, so  as  to  help  send  the  blood 
all  over  the  body.  You  know  when 
you  run,  the  blood  flows  much  fast- 
er than  when  you  are  quiet.  It  is 
a  good  plan  to  stand  by  an  open 
window  every  morning  and  every 
evening  and  fill  your  lungs  with 
good,  pure  air,  taking  about  twenty- 
five  deep  breaths. 


—68— 


I  want  to  help  you  to  grow  as  beautiful 
as  God  meant  you  to  be  when  He  thought 
of  you  first. 

George  MacDonald. 


CHAPTER   Vn 

THE  SIGN  LANGUAGE 

in\0  you  know  one  way  we  can 
^^  tell  if  all  the  organs  are  doing 
their  work  well?  By  watching  for 
the  sign  language.  If  the  blood 
is  not  carrying  the  skin  sufficient 
nourishment,  it  will  be  very  pale 
and  dull  looking.  If  the  waste  ma- 
terials are  not  being  carried  off, 
they  may  accumulate  in  the  skin 
and  clog  the  pores.  Then  we  will 
have  pimples  or  blackheads.  Each 
person's  skin  is  a  law  unto  it- 
self, and  what  is  beneficial  to  one 
may  not  be  to  another.  Generally, 
though,  it  will  be  found  helpful  to 
—71— 


CONFIDENCES 

bathe  the  face  at  night  with  hot 
water,  to  remove  all  dirt;  then,  if 
the  skin  is  rough,  massage  with 
good  cold  cream.  In  the  morning 
a  quick  rub  with  cold  water  should 
be  taken  (and  do  not  be  afraid  to 
rub  the  face  a  little).  If  you  are 
going  out  in  the  sun  or  wind,  fol- 
low with  a  little  good  talcum  or 
rice  powder,  to  protect  the  face 
from  the  raw  winds,  or,  if  the  skin 
is  inclined  to  be  dry,  apply  a  lit- 
tle cold  cream  before  using  the 
powder.  Any  eruptions  on  the  face 
show  a  defect  in  the  circulation. 
The  blood  is  not  disposing  of  the 
waste  material  properly,  and  it  is 
being  left  to  clog  the  pores  of  the 
skin.  These  eruptions  should  not 
be  neglected,  as  they  sometimes  indi- 
—72— 


THE  SIGN  LANGUAGE 

cate  a  serious  condition  of  the  blood 
or  circulation. 

The  eyes  tell  if  we  are  tired  or 
unwell,  for  then  they  will  be  dull, 
while,  if  we  abuse  or  strain  them, 
they  often  are  red.  This  not  only 
makes  them  less  attractive,  but  it 
shows  we  must  attend  to  them. 
Would  it  not  be  dreadful  if  they 
became  so  tired  or  worn  out  that 
we  could  not  see  with  them?  The 
care  of  the  eyes  is  very  important. 
When  you  are  reading  or  writing, 
the  light  should  come  over  your 
left  shoulder,  and  you  should  never 
try  to  read  in  a  poor  light.  Some- 
times, if  the  eyes  are  tired,  it  will 
rest  them  to  bathe  them  in  warm, 
boiled  water  in  which  some  boracic 
acid  crystals  have  been  dissolved. 
—73— 


CONFIDENCES 

You  may  even  put  a  few  drops  of 
this  solution  right  in  the  eye,  but 
never  put  anything  else  in  it  ex- 
cept by  the  directions  of  a  physi- 
cian, as  the  eyes  are  too  precious 
to  take  any  risks,  and  sometimes 
they  are  injured  by  various  eye 
waters. 

The  hair  also  shows  the  state  of 
the  health,  and  it  shows  if  we  are 
careless.  Nothing  so  detracts  from 
a  girPs  appearance  as  soiled  or  im- 
tidy  hair.  One  of  the  most  potent 
charms  a  woman  can  have  is  a 
well-kept,  luxuriant,  glossy  head  of 
hair.  Just  think  how  quickly  one 
notices  thin,  dry,  stiff  hair  on  a 
woman's  head.  And  as  for  those 
that  carry  around  diseased  scalps, 
plastered  with  offensive  oils,  they 
—74— 


THE  SIGN  LANGUAGE 

are  perfectly  hideous.  If  people 
only  knew  how  much  esteem  they 
lose  through  such  defects,  they 
would  give  more  attention  to  the 
matter.  The  hair  should  be  sham- 
pooed often  enough  to  keep  it 
clean  and  fluffy.  How  often  that 
is  depends  on  the  nature  of  the 
hair  and  the  occupation  of  the 
owner.  Usually  once  in  two  weeks 
is  often  enough,  but  light,  oily  hair 
may  require  it  more  frequently,  for 
it  loses  much  of  its  beauty  when 
oily.  To  promote  the  growth  of 
the  hair,  massage  of  the  scalp  usu- 
ally brings  very  satisfactory  re- 
sults, stimulating  a  new  growth 
and  healthy  appearance.  The  value 
of  tonics  often  is  in  the  massage. 
Many  of  the  hair  tonics  and  sham- 
—75— 


CONFIDENCES 

poos  on  the  market  not  only  are 
not  beneficial,  but  are  dangerous. 
An  ordinary  egg  shampoo,  which 
may  be  prepared  at  home,  is  per- 
haps the  best,  for  it  not  only 
cleanses  but  nourishes  the  hair. 

I  must  remind  you  of  a  part  of 
your  body  that  many  people  notice 
very  often  and  by  it  judge  if  you 
are  careless.  That  is  your  hands 
and  nails.  People  who  are  careful 
about  the  appearance  of  their  nails 
usually  are  careful  about  other 
things.  You  will  find  as  you  grow 
older  that  you  are  judged  a  good 
deal  by  the  little  things.  It  will 
pay  you  to  get  up  half  an  hour 
earlier  if  necessary  so  as  to  give 
yourself  time  for  those  little  per- 
sonal attentions  that  help  to  make 
—76— 


THE  SIGN  LANGUAGE 

a  girl  dainty.  You  will  be  sur- 
prised at  the  effect  on  your  mind 
of  extra  well-brushed  hair,  clear, 
bright  complexion,  polished  nails 
and  a  well-put-on  tie,  also  neat 
gloves  and  shoes. 


—77— 


Hush,  my  dear,  lie  still  and  slumber, 
Holy  angels   guard  thy  bed! 

Heavenly  blessings  without  number 
Gently  falling  on  thy  head. 

Watts. 


CHAPTER  Vin 
REST   AND   SLEEP 

YOU  have  seen,  Violet,  how  all 
the  parts  of  the  body  work 
together,  although  each  one  has  its 
especial  part  to  do.  You  remem- 
ber, we  found  the  stomach  must 
have  a  time  to  rest  between  meals. 
The  other  parts  of  the  body  re- 
quire rest,  too.  This  they  usually 
get  while  we  are  asleep.  We  must 
not  be  neglectful  and  fail  to  give 
them  enough  rest,  or  they  will  soon 
get  worn  out  and  give  us  trouble. 
Most  little  girls  require  eight  or 
ten  hours'  rest  every  night. 

Sometimes,  when  people  are  not 
—81— 


CONFIDENCES 

well  or  are  all  tired  out,  they  find 
they  cannot  sleep  well  at  night. 
There  are  a  number  of  little  things 
that  can  be  done  to  induce  sleep. 
A  warm  bath  before  retiring,  fol- 
lowed by  a  gentle  massage,  espe- 
cially along  the  spine,  often  will, 
by  relaxing  the  nerves  and  muscles, 
produce  very  good  results.  A  hot 
foot  bath,  which  draws  the  blood 
away  from  the  brain,  frequently 
will  be  found  beneficial.  A  glass 
of  hot  milk  or  cocoa,  taken  just 
before  retiring,  often  will  have  the 
same  effect.  If  the  sleeplessness  is 
a  result  of  indigestion,  a  plain  diet 
will  relieve.  Sleeping  upon  a  hard 
bed  without  any  pillow  sometimes 
produces  the  desired  effect.  Al- 
ways have  plenty  of  fresh  air  in 
—82— 


REST  AND  SLEEP 

the  room.  Keep  the  mind  free 
from  the  cares  of  the  day.  If  they 
will  intrude,  crowd  them  out  by 
repeating  something  else  —  some 
soothing  sentence  or  bit  of  poetry. 
One  good  plan  is  to  close  the  left 
nostril  by  pressing  on  it  with  the 
finger,  then  take  four  deep  breaths 
through  the  right  nostril.  Then 
close  the  right  nostril  and  take 
four  deep  breaths  through  the  left 
one.  Repeat  this  about  four  times. 
Then  breathe  slowly  through  both 
nostrils,  but  count  yoin*"*  breaths. 
You  seldom  will  count  very  many. 
Never  take  any  sleeping  powders 
or  tablets  except  upon  the  advice 
of  a  physician,  for  they  usually 
contain  drugs  that  will  injure  the 
heart. 

—83— 


CONFIDENCES 

You  will  find,  Violet,  that  you 
will  meet  a  number  of  women  who 
are  nervous,  which  means  they 
have ,  not  control  of  their  nerves, 
but  let  them  run  away  with  them. 
Sometimes  this  is  shown  in  palpi- 
tation of  the  heart,  headache,  back- 
ache, and  many  other  disorders. 
There  may  be  a  tendency  to  cry  at 
trivial  things,  or  a  feeling  of  hav- 
ing *'the  blues.''  The  cause  usu- 
ally can  be  found  in  uncongenial 
surroundings  or  occupation,  loss  of 
friends,  or  real  or  fancied  troubles. 
Whatever  the  cause,  it  should  be 
removed,  if  possible,  and  measures 
taken  to  restore  the  worn  out 
nerves  that  are  crying  for  rest  or 
food.  Tonics  help,  so  does  nourish- 
ing food,  such  as  eggs  and  milk;  also 
—84— 


BEST  AND  SLEEP 

a  change  of  scene  and  occupation, 
if  possible.  A  woman  who  is  ner- 
vous frequently  does  not  realize  what 
is  the  cause  of  her  condition,  and 
considers  only  the  symptoms.  So 
when  she  has  a  headache,  resorts 
to  headache  powders  or  various  ef- 
fervescing drinks.  In  taking  these 
she  only  is  deadening  the  pain  and 
not  removing  the  cause,  so  the 
pain  is  liable  to  retiu-n.  Most  of 
the  remedies  taken  for  headache 
contain  some  harmful  drug.  If  you 
look  carefully  at  the  label,  you 
usually  will  find  that  they  contain 
morphine,  phenacetin,  or  acetanilid, 
which  are  very  depressing  to  the 
heart.  Pain  is  the  cry  of  tortured 
nerves,  so  if  one  suffers  from  head- 
aches or  backaches,  she  should  not 
—85— 


CONFIDENCES 

take  any  of  these  harmful  drugs, 
but  should  hunt  for  the  cause  of 
the  pain  and  remove  that. 


—86— 


Even  from  the  body's  purity,  the  mind 
Eeeeives  a  secret  sympathetic  aid. 

Thomson, 


CHAPTER  IX 
INJURY  OF  THE  NEST 

WE  who  love  birds  would  not 
do  anything  to  injure  their 
homes,  but  there  are  some  children 
who  have  not  learned  to  love  birds 
or  who  are  thoughtless  and  injure 
their  nests,  sometimes  even  tearing 
them  to  pieces  or  breaking  off  the 
limb  of  the  tree. 

There  also  are  thoughtless  children 
who  do  things  to  injure  their  bodies. 
You  would  think  it  very  foolish  to 
allow  someone  to  put  a  bee  on  your 
face  that  would  sting  you  and  yet 
there  are  some  thoughtless  children 
who  would  do  just  that  if  you  would 
-89— 


CONFIDENCES 

let  them.  They  might  even  try  to  tell 
you  it  would  not  hurt  you,  but  of 
course  you  would  know  better.  You, 
who  know  how  necessary  is  every 
part  of  the  body,  would  not  allow 
anyone  to  injure  any  part  of  it,  espe- 
cially the  part  that  contains  the 
mother  nest.  Think  how  badly  the 
mother  bird  must  have  felt  when  the 
child  destroyed  the  nest,  and  think 
how  badly  you  would  feel,  when  it 
came  time  for  you  to  marry  and  have 
a  baby,  if  you  found  the  nest  had 
been  so  injured  that  you  could  not 
have  any.  You  know,  the  nest  as  well 
as  the  rest  of  the  body  belongs  to  you 
alone,  and  no  one  has  a  right  to  in- 
jure it,  but  sometimes  girls  are  as 
careless  or  as  thoughtless  as  the  boy 
with  the  bee  and  do  things  that  are 
—90— 


INJURY  OP  THE  NEST 

harmful.  I  have  told  you  how  to 
care  for  this  mother  nest  so  it  will 
grow  well  and  strong,  but  now  I  must 
tell  you  something  more.  As  you  go 
out  in  the  world  you  will  meet  some 
girls  and  some  boys  who  have  never 
been  told  these  things  and  do  not  un- 
derstand all  the  things  you  do.  Some- 
times they  have  very  wrong  ideas  and 
will  do  many  things  that  are  harm- 
ful. Not  only  that,  but  they  will  try 
to  get  you  to  do  them.  Some  little 
girls  who  do  not  understand  what 
their  organs  are  for  will  even  play 
with  them,  for  they  think  it  gives 
them  a  pleasurable  sensation.  I  am 
siu'e  they  would  not  do  this  if  they 
understood  that  by  so  doing  they 
were  injuring  the  precious  nest.  You 
know  if  you  or  anyone  else  would 
—91— 


CONFIDENCES 

put  things  into  your  eyes  or  ears  or 
play  with  them  in  any  way  you  might 
lose  your  sight  or  hearing.  It  is  the 
same  way  with  the  mother  nest  and 
other  organs.  The  best  plan  is  to  just 
keep  them  clean  and  then  not  touch 
them  at  any  other  time  nor  allow  any- 
one else  to  do  so.  But  in  bathing  the 
parts  you  must  be  careful  to  have 
your  own  towel  and  not  use  any 
cloths  that  have  been  used  by  other 
people,  for  there  are  some  dreadful 
diseases,  called  the  black  plagues, 
that  can  be  carried  to  these  organs 
by  anything  that  is  not  strictly  clean, 
and  these  diseases  sometimes  destroy 
the  nest  and  ovules.  So  you  must  be 
careful  in  all  you  do. 
If  at  any  time,  Violet,  questions 

come  up  in  your  mind  as  to  what  is 
—92— 


INJURY  OF  THE  NEST 

the  best  thing  for  you  to  do,  remem- 
ber that  mother  will  be  glad  to  an- 
swer them  or  will  help  you  obtain 
books  that  will  explain  things  to  you. 
Do  not  go  to  your  companions,  for 
they  might  not  understand  and  would 
give  you  wrong  ideas.  In  school  we 
have  text  books  and  a  teacher,  who 
is  older  and  more  experienced  than 
we,  to  whom  we  can  go  for  help  in 
our  school  problems.  We  know  she 
will  tell  us  the  right  solution  and  we 
know  it  is  better  to  go  to  her  than 
to  the  other  pupils.  So  in  this  study 
of  our  bodies  and  the  care  of  them, 
we  must  learn  from  some  one  older 
and  more  experienced,  or  we  must 
study  books  that  have  been  written 
for  that  purpose.  Then  we  will  be 
sure  to  obtain  the  right  ideas. 
—93— 


CONFIDENCES 

After  a  while,  when  you  are  grown 
and  it  is  nearing  the  time  for  you  to 
marry,  I  will  tell  you  some  things 
about  the  care  of  the  baby  and  how 
you  may  have  a  good-natured,  healthy 
child.  But  now  all  you  need  to  do 
for  a  niunber  of  years  is  to  take  good 
care  of  this  mother  nest  and  the  rest 
of  your  body,  so  it  will  grow  strong 
and  well. 


-94— 


The  Girl  Wanted 

BY 

NIXON  WATERMAN 


Cheerful,  friendly  talks  to  young  women, 

telling  them  how  they  can    mould  their 

temperaments  and  shape  their  characters 

to  sweetest  and  noblest  influence. 


Every  young  woman  should  read  this  book.  Every 
parent  should  make  it  a  point  to  have  her  read  it. 
Every  institution  dedicated  to  her  instruction  should 
introduce  to  her  this  beautiful  book  of  the  heart  and 
mind. — Boston  Globe. 

There  is  nothing  trite  or  juiceless  in  this  book. 
Every  paragraph  is  appetizing.  A  girl  will  be  glad 
she  has  read  it,  and  will  be  the  better,  the  sweeter, 
the  happier  therefor. — The  Journal  of  Education. 

No  one  can  resist  it.  A  fine  book  for  presentation 
at  graduation,  either  from  grammar  or  high  school. — 
The  World  *s  Chronicle. 

Will  at  once  win  the  reader's  heart.  In  these  pages 
one  does  not  rake  among  dry  leaves,  but  rather  wan- 
ders through  sweet-smelling  meadows.  —  Christian 
Endeavor  World. 


Illustrated.         Beautiful  cover.         Cloth,  8vo. 

PRICE,  $1.25 

For  sale  hy  all  hooTcsellers  or  sent  postpaid  "by  the 
publishers 

FORBES  &   COMPANY,   CHICAGO 


Happy  School  Days 

A  BOOK  FOR  GIRLS 
BY 

MARGARET  E.  SANGSTER 

In  this  book  Mrs.  Sangster  writes  charm- 
ingly and  sympathetically  of  the  things 
nearest  to  the  hearts  of  girls.  It  discusses 
the  school,  home  and  entire  life  of  the  girl 
in  her  teens. 

It  ought  to  reach  the  hands  of  every  girl. — St.  Paul 
Pioneer  Press, 

The  book  is  as  fascinating  as  a  story. — Des  Moines 
Begister  and  Leader. 

Every  girl 's  mother  ought  to  make  her  a  present  of 
this  book. — St,  Louis  Times, 

A  charming  book  pervaded  with  the  spirit  of  sweet 
friendliness,  complete  comprehension  and  joyous  help- 
fulness.— Chicago  News, 

An  interesting,  suggestive,  sensible  book,  in  which 
Mrs.  Sangster  is  at  her  best.  It  is  a  book  of  great 
worth,  and  whoever  extends  its  usefulness  by  increas- 
ing its  readers  is  a  public  benefactor. — The  Journal 
of  Education, 

Handsome  cover.  Decorated  box.  Cloth,  12mo. 

PRICE,  $1.25 

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publishers 

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